This Thursday marks the opening of the Stockton Junior High Volleyball and Football seasons. The teams will travel to WaKeeney to take on the Trego Golden Eagles. Volleyball matches will begin at 4:00 p.m., while the football game will kick off at 6:00 p.m.

The fall sports activities will begin as scheduled for the 2020-21 school year, following action by the Kansas State High School Activities Association Executive Board on July 28. This includes practice and competition.

THE SWIM LEAGUE had cancelled the swim meets for the season due to COVID-19, but the Stockton Tiger Sharks went ahead and held practices for seven weeks working on stroke technique so they will be ready to go for next season! Their team t-shirt reflected the pandemic by stating “COVID-19 can’t stop a shark—swimming is winning.” Pictured are (sitting on board, from left): Garrison Mongeau, Tessa Look, Corbyn Glendening, Remy Muir, Hadlee Sterling, Blayke Stithem, Aidyen Kerr, Jefferson Creighton, Norah Muir, Cambry Glendening, Harper Lowry, Lily Yohon, Bryah Stithem; (standing on board): Meredith Gasper, Piper Creighton, Caydance Carter, Shae Yohon, Ruthie Voss, Claire Plumer, Lucie Voss, Blaire Beougher; (on the high board): Delanee Bedore, Tierra Yohon, Jalia Creighton, Jayana Creighton, Chloe Plumer, Malynn Plumer, and swim coach Daphne Plumer..

MEMBERS OF THE 2020 WESTERN KANSAS BASEBALL TEAM are front row (l to r): Zeke Balthazor, Haden Hahn, Kolt Kuhlmann and Joseph Cockrell; and back row: Coach Zach Kesler, Jace Kesler, Cameron Earl, Damon Muir, Cameron Horn, Jonathan Graham, Kolby Dix, and Coach Alexa Rogers. Not Pictured is Coach Austin Wieden.

The new scoreboard has been installed at the Legion Field down at the Stockton City Park courtesy of a grant from Heartland Community Foundation to help with the purchase. Not only is the Stockton Recreation Commission ready for the ball season, the installation for the new sign, which was installed by the City of Stockton employees, is the official launching point for the new redesign of the ball field!

MACY ODLE, STOCKTON HIGH SCHOOL CLASS OF 2020, signed a letter of intent to play softball at Cloud County Community College in Concordia this fall. Among those on hand for her signing were her parents (seated beside Macy) Janel and Brad Odle, as well as her coaches, Kaci Nichols (standing left), Ryan Becker (standing right) and SHS Co-Athletic Director Marcia Hrabe (standing center). Odle, a pitcher, intends to study Agriculture Business at CCCC.

Many golfers would have used the nasty winds last Sunday as an excuse for having a bad round. Not Stockton’s James Berkley. In fact, despite the effects of Mother Nature, he sank his second hole-in-one while enjoying the pastime with some friends from Hays: Dave Steeples, Barry Kleweno, Greg Ice and Marc Mock.

Due to social distancing measures, the Kansas Wildlife, Parks and Tourism (KWPT) Commission conducted a video conference for its April 23 public meeting. During the Public Hearing portion of the meeting, the Commission voted on several items, including 2020-2021 waterfowl and big game hunting season dates. The Commission also approved staff recommendations to maintain current duck hunting zone boundaries, and to split the current sandhill crane management unit into two separate zones – a central zone and a western zone – in an effort to create early-season hunting opportunities across western Kansas. With the new regulation in place, the sandhill crane hunting season will run Oct. 17 to Dec. 13, 2020, in the Western Zone and Nov. 11, 2020 to Jan. 7, 2021, in the Central Zone.